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Name
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KRISTI BROOKS
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Country
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United States
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Job Title
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Controls Design Engineer
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Organization
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Invie Consulting, Inc.
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Industry
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Manufacturing
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Work Description
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Design control wiring and
programming for manufacturing
applications
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Personal Interests
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Activities with any/all of
my three boys, running, reading fiction,
volunteering at my church
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IEEE Volunteer Position/s 2007
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Regional 4, Area Chair
Teller’s Committee,
Vice-Chair
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Past Volunteer Positions
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RAB GOLD Committee, RAB
Rep/Secretary (2005-2006)
Region 4, GOLD Coordinator
(2003-2004)
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Describe something that you did as a
volunteer that you are proud of.
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When I first took on the
role of Regional Coordinator, most
Section officers
didn’t know what GOLD was let
alone what active GOLD
members could do to help out their
section. I was able to get in
front of members of the sections and
educate them about what GOLD
is and how to encourage the younger
members to become more active
in their section’s activities. In
the period of just 3 years, the
sections started to recognize this and
the number of GOLD affinity
groups increased dramatically. Now, I
see many members of GOLD at
Regional meetings representing their
Section.
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How has IEEE nurtured you as a person?
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IEEE has given me the
opportunity to stretch myself personally
and professionally.
Most fellow volunteers are very
encouraging and are more
than willing to help in any way they
can. I’ve been
given countless opportunities to find
out that I have more
non-technical skills than I thought.
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How has IEEE prepared you for your workplace?
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Volunteering is an excellent
chance to grow. It is an environment
that is relatively risk-free and the
benefits are great. I jokingly
tell people that you can take risks and
even if you don’t
accomplish everything you set out to do,
there is no risk to your job
as a result. Any failures to achieve
your goals as a volunteer
won’t show up on your next
performance evaluation. However, I have
found that as a result of my
volunteering experience, I am much
more self-confident. I know that
it’s okay to try something
I’ve not done before.
It’s okay to admit you
don’t know it all and to
ask for help.
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What do you like most about
volunteering with IEEE?
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I’ve worked on many
different committees within the IEEE,
meeting many people from
many different countries. By getting a
chance to know these people,
I’ve found that many of the
stereotypes I was taught
when growing up were not accurate.
I’ve also been able to
dispel misconceptions about people from
Fargo, ND. I can definitely
say that I have matured as a result of
my volunteering, maybe
because there is no pay incentive
involved. I have to look to
myself for the motivation and not
anybody or anything else.
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What wouldn't be possible for you, if
you hadn't volunteered
for IEEE?
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I can’t imagine not
volunteering in the IEEE. I have met so
many wonderful people
through volunteering. These people are
the type I want to be like:
self-motivated, thorough, organized,
task-oriented and more. It
just makes sense to associate with
people who have traits you
admire. It might just rub off on you.
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An IEEE friend who left an inspiring
impression on you.
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Ron Jensen has been
influential in my volunteering in the
IEEE. I know he truly cares about the
volunteers as a person, not
just a warm body to fill the
position. Another trait I admire
is Ron’s relentless drive to add
new people to the group of
volunteers. So many times, we grow
comfortable with the group we
have and that makes the group grow
stagnant. New, fresh ideas and
perspectives are always good.
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